Fayetteville get ready for a weekend of poetry and music. El'J, one of the city's favorite poets, is finally releasing his highly anticipated book of poetry, El'J Dilla: Poems Inspired by the Music of J Dilla.
Festivities kick off at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 21 with the El'J Dilla Poetry Slam at The Sweet Palette. Listen as 14 North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia poets compete in 3 rounds for a cash prize and bragging rights. Spinning on the 1’s and 2’s is Wilmington’s own DJ Big B from Coast 97.3 and hosting is the brilliant poet, author, and lyricist, Ebony Payne. This event is free to the public.
Saturday marks the biggest part of the weekend-long celebration, with the official book release party at The Arts Council of Fayetteville/Cumberland County with special guest, Maureen “Ma Dukes” Yancey, the mother of the late J Dilla and Detroit native.
At 7 p.m., guests will be treated to a night of live music, spoken word, and a discussion panel. Local radio personality and Queen of the stage, Dominque Womack will moderate. Comedian and veteran advocate, Dennis V will hit the stage for some laughs.
Emmy award winner Boris Rogers and the incomparable Stephanie Lask (Sheph Love) will bring their soulful sounds and voices to the stage, setting the tone for a night sure to please the visual and auditory palate. El'J will be performing excerpts from his book as well as signing copies. Performances by other award-winning poets, Nazir Jones (Harvard University) and Piedmont Poet Laureate, Dasan Ahanu will round out the evening. Tickets are free, but space is limited.
Register to attend this event at http://eljdillabookrelease.eventbrite.co. Closing out the festivities is the El'J Dilla Weekend Brunch at the Sip Room located at 106 Hay Street from noon to 3 p.m. Attendees will indulge in a luxury brunch buffet in the swanky ambiance of the lux wine bar.
Local DJ, Greg GMoniy Johnson will be spinning the records and keeping the vibe of the weekend with J Dilla classics. “Ma Dukes” Yancey will end the weekend celebration of not only El'J’s book release, but her son’s life and legacy as the guest speaker, sharing stories that only a mother can share. This event is the only one ticketed. Tickets are $42 per person and can be purchased online at http://eljdillabrunch.eventbrite.com.
El’Ja, as he is professionally known, has been writing and performing poetry seriously since his departure from the military. El’Ja has countless awards and accolades under his belt, including the 2nd Annual McDonalds Food for Thought Poetry Slam, Southern Fried (as a member of the Bull City Slam Team), individual slams, and The Campaign for Change Slam, just to name a few.
This year marks a monumental year for his Southeast Regional Poetry Slam, celebrating 13 years. The release of his book, El'J Dilla: Poems Inspired by the Music of J Dilla, has been years in the making and is a project that combines two of the poet's favorite things, poetry, and J Dilla music.
“El’J Dilla weekend is the combination of a few things. Number one is the release of my book, El'J Dilla: Poems Inspired by the Music of J Dilla. If you don’t know who J Dilla is, go by his real name James Yancey, originally from Detroit, Michigan.
"He’s your favorite producers’ favorite producer and worked with everybody from Janet Jackson, Tribe Called Quest, Common, and D’Angelo. He was like a ghost producer on the Voodoo album. A lot of people don’t know that. He passed away from Lupus, but his music and his production live on,” El’J said. “I had a chance of writing these poems three years ago and it was an idea that came from my wife wanting me to do a mix tape. I decided to write his mom a message on Facebook just saying ‘hey I want to honor your son by doing this book because his music changed me.’ She saw the message, she set up a Zoom and we talked from there. She wrote the forward for the book … There are two ways you can read this book. You get the poems, and you read the book. That's it. It’s a good book. Then in the back, it’s a tracklist, in order, based on the poems you have, a poem based on the track. Now the other way you can read this is that there is a playlist called El’J Dilla on Youtube that you can read the poems to the music.”
El’J has no plans to slow down anytime soon. He’s headed to Knoxville, Tennessee with the Detour Slam team to compete, hoping to bring the trophy to Fayetteville this year, along with several poetry slams and readings.

(Photo: El' J Dilla: Poems Inspired by the Music of J Dilla, is being celebrated duirng El' J Dilla Weekend, Feb. 21-23 in Fayetteville.)